Wizard101
by ThatWizard
Summary: Valon Hawk's new life as a Wizard. Join him as he encounters danger, romance, friendship, excitement, and magic in his journies to become the most powerful Wizard there is.
1. The New Wizard in Town

**Chapter 1 **

**The New Wizard in Town**

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_ The alarm clock blared. The blankets on the bed lurched and then a boy launched out of the bed. Papers and wide opened books fell to the ground.

"Aw snap! I fell asleep while I was studying!" The boy shouted. It seemed like an old man and an owl were watching the boy through a crystal ball.

"A-ha! The spell is working!" Said the old man. "Look, Gamma! Finally, we have found one!"

"Whoooo?" The talking owl asked.

"A young Wizard! A student with amazing potential…enough, perhaps, to save Wizard City!" The man answered.

"Oh really?" The owl hooted. "Where?"

"A very, very distant realm…My goodness! On a world that does not even believe in magic! I wonder what manner of Wizard they might become. Perhaps we should consult the Book of Secrets." The man turns toward the crystal ball to look at the boy. "Hmmm…it seems he has a test today. Well we'll just give him a test of our own.

"Valon, hurry! You'll miss the bus!" The boy's mom called. Valon grabbed his brown bagged lunch and raced out the door. The bus passed by his house as soon as he left.

"Aw snap!" Valon shouted as he followed the bus. He took a book out of his backpack and continued to run to school while memorizing facts for his test.

Once he finally got to school he rushed to his homeroom, 301.

"How nice of you to join us, Mr. Hawk. Are you ready for your test?" His teacher, Mr. Grey said. He snatched the textbook away from Valon, and gave him the test. Unbeknownst to Valon, as soon as he touched the test, it transformed into the old man's test.

He sat at his desk and took out his pen. The old man's test was full of personality questions.

_1. Would I rather spend time alone or with friends? _Valon thought. _Definitely with friends._

_2. Which is the most powerful?_

_Plague_

_Tornado_

_Hurricane_

_Volcano_

_Sandstorm_

_Earthquake_

_Blizzard_

_I'm gonna go with plague._

_3. My favorite activity is…_

_Competitive sports_

_Reading, playing games_

_I can't decide_

_Playing with my pets_

_Leaning something new_

_Camping or fishing_

_Competitive sports all the way!_

_4. What is your favorite time of day?_

_Night_

_Morning_

_Afternoon_

_I think night._

_5. What is more important to you?_

_Competing with others_

_Cooperating with others_

_Cooperating. _

_6. Which is your favorite?_

_Dragon_

_Serpent_

_Polar Bear_

_Bat_

_Unicorn_

_Crab_

_Shark_

_Hm…Shark._

_7. Which is your favorite Gemstone?_

_Peridot_

_Citrine_

_Jade_

_Ruby_

_Sapphire_

_Amethyst_

_Onyx_

_I'd have to pick…onyx._

That was the end of the test. Once Valon put down his pen and picked up his paper. He was extremely confused as to why all of the questions Mr. Grey and it instantly transformed into an A+ test.

Once I finally got home, Valon crawled into bed. Suddenly he felt a warping sensation. His clothes were replaced with a black robe with white trims. A pointy black and white hat appeared on his head.

In an instant he opened his eyes, and found himself staring at a long white scraggly beard.

"Well, hello! If it isn't our newest student!" Valon looked up. He backed up and saw the voice was coming from an old man in wizard clothing and a monocle.

"Whaaaat?" Valon says. "Student?"

"My name is Merle Ambrose. I am the headmaster of the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts."

"Raven-what? Wait, did you just say magic?"

"We're expecting great things from you. But first thing's first. My owl friend would like to speak with you." Ambrose pointed at the owl perched atop a stand.

"You want me to _talk_ to the bird?" Valon walked over to the owl. "Am I being punk'd?"

"Hellooo! My name is Gamma the Owl, and I'm quite pleased to meet yooou!"

Valon screamed and fell backwards to the ground.

"Aw snap! The bird is talking to me!"

"Wizards test their skills by summoning fantastic creatures and dueling!" the owl said.

"Okay, Valon, calm down. This is a dream. It has to be a dream. It's impossible to—Did you just say summon fantastic creatures and dueling."

"To become a Master Wizard, you must learn every spell in your class."

"Master Wizard…spells…class? I'm not following any of this."

"Wizards love to duel. The more spells you learn, the better a duelist you will become."

"Duel? How am I supposed to summon anything? I don't have magical powers, or creatures to fight with. Now I know I'm dream-" Out of nowhere, the ground began to shake. The sky turned from blue to the deepest shade of grey Valon had ever seen. Rain fell from the sky rapidly. A bolt of lightning struck the tower behind Ambrose and a figure appeared in the window.

"Whoooo?" Gamma hooted.

"How odd! Come along, young Wizard. Let's investigate the matter. Meet me in the tower!" Ambrose said as he walked toward the tower. Valon followed Ambrose into the tower. "Who's there?" Ambrose said as he opened the door. He gasped as soon as he saw who it was. "Malistaire!" There was a large amount of hatred in Ambrose's voice.

"Ambrose…" Malistaire sneers.

"You are no longer welcome here! Why have you returned?" Ambrose said.

"I'm here to resolve our unfinished business!" Malistaire looked in Valon's direction. "Is this your latest student? My henchmen will see to your little friend!" Suddenly, a circle enclosed around Valon's feet. He tried to step out of the glowing ring, but there was some kind of invisible force field kept him inside.

"Headmaster, help!" Valon screamed as the circle he was in moved toward the battle field. The battle field was a large ring with a spiral in the middle.

"Young Wizard!" Ambrose dug into his robes and pulled out a bunch of cards. "Take this deck of Spell Cards and confront them! Be brave and I will guide you!" Valon turned to face them. There were two hideous dragon creatures. The deck Ambrose gave to Valon began glowing. It jumped right out of his hand and landed in midair right in front of him. Suddenly, two cards jumped in front of him with their backs facing the beasts. One read 'Troll', while the other read 'Fire Cat'.

"What do I do?" Valon said to Ambrose.

"Tap one of the cards!" Ambrose said. Valon tapped the card, 'Troll'. The Fire Cat card turned face down and moved next to the deck while the Troll card went into Valon's hand.

"What now?" Valon said.

"Wait, young Wizard." The first Dragon creature moved his hands about and said,

"Elteeb Eci!" A light blue symbol resembling a snowflake appeared in front of it, and then disappeared. The entire battle field turned into ice. The ice on the field turned into an ice sculpture of a beetle. The beetle came to life. It then breathed a freezing blast of wind. Some hale flew out of the beast's mouth too and punted Valon in the face. Valon groaned in pain, but he was able to shake it off.

The next beast proclaimed, "Noiprocs!" A portal appeared out of nowhere and a scorpion jumped out of it. The creature sprayed it's venom at me. It stung horribly.

"It is your turn, now, young Wizard! Summon the beast in your hand!" Ambrose said.

"But I'm not a Wizard! I don't have magical powers! I can't summon a Troll!"

"Concentrate, young Wizard! Focus, toss the card in the air, and say the name of the spell backwards!" Valon concentrated and threw the card in the air.

"Llort!" A glowing silhouette of a Troll appeared in the middle of the battle field. Then the Troll, itself appeared. It spun around to gain momentum, and then tossed its club at one of the dragons.

"Aw snap! Did you just see that? I…Am I really a Wizard?"

"You're a hurt Wizard!" Said Ambrose.

"Huh?" Valon said.

"Look at your wrist, young Wizard. Valon raised his left wrist to his face. He was wearing some kind of watch. There were two glass circles on the watch. One big one with red liquid inside, one small one with blue liquid. The big circle was only about three quarters of the way full, and a hologram projected the number 350. The small one was just a little less than full. It read thirteen. "You'll need to pay attention to your health. The red dome shows your health. If it completely empties, you'll be defeated. The blue one shows your current amount of Mana. Mana is the magical energy that allows us to cast spells. If you run out of that…you'll be at the mercy of your opponents."

"Headmaster!" Valon interrupted, "We're under attack!" They both turn to face the dragons. Valon taps the Fire Cat card. The first dragon creature summoned another Scorpion and it gashed Valon with one of its claws.

"Etarip Lateleks!" the second one screeched. The battlefield filled ankle-high with water. A small island bearing a palm tree protruded from the water. On the island was a skeleton dressed as a pirate.

"What's that gonna-" The Skeleton jumped to life and drew a sword. It slashed Valon with the sword. Valon looked at his watch. It read 155. Valon felt weak. The dome was only about a quarter of the way filled with the red liquid. But he summoned his might and threw the Fire Cat card in the air.

"Tac Erif!" The Fire Cat fell from the sky while landing on its paws. It tackled one of the dragons and burst into flames as soon as it made contact. The dragon was hurt, but it still stood strong, whereas Valon was ready to pass out. Malistaire laughed.

"Ambrose, you doddering fool! Your student is no match for my forces!" A card was drawn from Valon's deck. It read Unicorn.

"Young Wizard, you're in trouble! Cast that Unicorn spell on yourself!" Valon tapped the card and it went into his hand.

"Krahs Mrots!" the dragon growled. The field, once again filled ankle-high with water. A cloud formed above the water and lightning struck. A shark jumped out, sunk its teeth into Valon, and then disappeared. The pain Valon felt was immense. His health had gone down to eighty. With the sparse amount of energy left, he dropped the card onto the field.

"Nrocinu…" He felt his body about to give in when the battlefield turned grassy and radiant. A Unicorn appeared, and pointed its horn at Valon. The horn glowed. Valon felt his cuts and gashes heal. He looked at his watch and it completely refilled with the red liquid. Valon's maximum amount of health is 450 because that's what the watch read. Malistaire turned red with rage.

"Foolish creatures! You've let the young whelp heal! Defeat the whelp or you'll suffer for it! Use your spells to weaken the young Wizard's spells!"

"Wait! They can weaken my spells?" Valon exclaimed

"Young Wizard, look at the ring around your feet." Ambrose said. There was a small white glowing orb on the ring. "That's a Pip. Pips are magical energies. The more Pips you have, the stronger spells you can cast. Take some more." Two more Pips appeared. A card came from the deck. Since it was Valon's only choice, he tapped it. The first dragon passed so that he could gain more Pips. The second, however, took Malistaire's advice.

"Ssenkaew." A grey shield appeared and began to rotate around Valon.

"Htarw S'erutan!" The battlefield turned to a fall scene. Leaves were scattered everywhere and giant rocks were spread around. A small sprout rose out of the ground. It rapidly grew into a large tree. The tree came to life.

"Young Wizard, the spell that creature cast reduces the power of your own spell." Ambrose said. The tree picked up the rock. The rotating shield burst open releasing its power to weaken the spell. The tree threw the rock at one of the dragons. The deck drew another card.

"Cast that on yourself, young Wizard. It will _increase _the power of your next spell." Valon tapped the card.

"Xineohp." The ground shook. A small flame formed. A gigantic flaming bird shot out of the ground. It breathed a stream of fire at Valon. It was, now the second dragon's turn.

"Ruatnec!" The battlefield, once again, turned into a fall scene. A Centaur came out of thin air. He wore a quiver and held a bow. He pulled an arrow out of the quiver and shot Valon with it. Valon's health was heading south again. It now read 260.

"Edalbecnalab!" Another shield began to circle around Valon. Another card is drawn from the deck. Valon read it to himself. "395 damage to all enemies…That's not enough. And I don't have the Pips."

"Wait a moment, young Wizard. The Balanceblade spell you cast should make that spell strong enough to defeat them both. I'll take care of the Pips." Ambrose said. The Pips needed to cast the spell appeared at Valon's feet. He tapped the card.

"Ruatonim." the first dragon casted. The battle field turned into a meadow with stone pillars. An enormous Minotaur with an ax stepped out of thin air. It slashed Valon's arm, and then disappeared. "Gip Ajnin." The second one said. Three pigs with ninja clothing and swords jumped out of the ground. They did a bunch of flips and tricks, but in the end, they attacked Valon all the same. Valon didn't bother looking at his health because the duel was about to end.

"This is about to end!" he said.

"_**WHAT?" **_Malistaire shouted.

"Ekirts Roetem!" Valon threw the card into the air and a portal appeared. The Balanceblade released its power and made the meteors hurling towards the dragons stronger. They were hit and immediately defeated.

"Excellent work, young Wizard! Now let me see to Malistaire…I'll show him…threatening a new student before orientation, no less!" Ambrose said.

"Another time, old man…I have what I came for. And now, I'll take my leave of this wretched place." Malistaire sneered. He disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"He's gone, and none too soon! What sinister goal brought him here? Hmm…" Ambrose was so lost in thought, he forgot about Valon. "Oh my! You look a bit worse for wear. Here, let me restore you to your full health and Mana." Valon looked at his watch. His health and Mana were completely restored. "On the bright side, congratulations! Defeating Malistaire's henchmen has earned you some experience." Valon saw that his watch did, indeed have a bar on it that was, now almost filled with a green liquid. "You gain experience by practicing your Wizard training. When the bar fills up, you'll gain a level and be able to learn new spells. You'll also need a Spellbook and a wand." Ambrose handed him a miniscule book. "That book will grow to normal size telepathically. Meaning, when you want it to grow, it will. Now, according to that test you took earlier today, you would best be qualified as a Necromancer. So you get this." Ambrose handed Valon a wand. "The Wand of Repose. It will give you access to three Dark Sprites, plus beginner cards from each of the schools. Now I'll be on my way."

"Wait, Headmaster, what am I supposed to do?" Valon asked.

"Stay here. I'll summon you to my office one your enrollment is ready."

"But wait!" Ambrose disappeared, leaving Valon in the tower alone. "Aw snap…"


	2. The School Bully

**Chapter 2**

**The School Bully**

"Aw snap! He left me in this creepy tower! What am I supposed to do? Wait a minute. Ambrose said something about a school. I got it! This is all a dream and this is the part where everyone in the school sees me in my underwea-" Valon instantly disappeared. He reappeared in what looked like a principal's office, but way cooler. It was full of kids who looked around my age. "Aw snap! Did I just teleport." Valon exclaimed.

"Indeed, young Wizard." It was Ambrose. Valon walked over to him. "Welcome to Wizard City, young Wizard. Things here are not normally this hectic. There's a problem on Unicorn Way that absolutely must be dealt with before we can get you enrolled."

"Unicorn what now?" Valon replied.

"I've an idea! The way you battled those dragon creatures has given me faith in you. Perhaps _you _might be able to take a look? You can help us. It'll also let you see more of Wizard City."

"No offense, Headmaster, but you kinda coached me through that battle. I have no idea how to help you." Valon said.

"I believe in you." Ambrose said. He snapped his fingers. A pen and a piece of paper appeared in midair. The pen almost instantly wrote a small letter in masterful calligraphy. An envelope appeared and the letter fell right into it. The envelope was sealed with an ornate wax seal. The pen disappeared and the letter flew into Valon's hand. Please deliver this lever to Private Stillson at the Unicorn Way gate. He will let you through." Valon turned from Ambrose and walked out the door. There was a stone gate right outside of the office. Valon walked through it. It was amazing. It was like a common area. Green fields, a lake in the middle, and stands like you would find in a bazar. Valon looked around. There were multiple tunnels. Valon figured one must lead to unicorn way so he wandered a bit. He soon came to a bridge. Fascinated by everything else, he wasn't really watching where he was going and bumped into someone. They both fell to the ground. It was a boy about Valon's with white hair and red eyes. He wasn't wearing the same outfit Valon was.

"Watch where you're going, noob!" he said as soon as they got up.

"Whoa, man, I'm sorry."

"Where do you even think you're going? Unicorn Way is closed because of ghosts! Bet you wanna run away now, huh?"

"Dude, I said I was sorry!" The boy's eyes started flaming. A fireball appeared in his hand.

"You will be!" He wound his hand back as if he was about to throw a baseball.

"Mason, can't you just be a normal bully who steals lunch money. You can't just go using your magical powers on new students. It's against school rules." This boy was wearing the same outfit Valon was just in different colors: Yellow with a light blue trim.

"Oh yes, officer dork!" Valon pushed the other boy out of the way and walked away.

"Hey, Newbie, Mason Grey isn't the kind of guy you wanna make an enemy of on your first day at Ravenwood. Name's Gil Blaine. I heard you're actually going to Unicorn Way. Sorry, but, two things. One, Unicorn Way is closed. Two, don't take this the wrong way, but that's no place for a level one like you."

"Thaaaaaaaaaannnkksssssss…?" Valon said slowly as he inched pass Gil.

"Wait, what are you doing? Didn't you hear me?" Gil said.

"May I ask what level _you_ are?" Valon asked. Gil slightly frowned.

"Three…but that's why _I'm_ not going to Unicorn Way and you shouldn't either. There are ghosts out there. Who sent you anyways?"

"Headmaster Ambrose sent me to _help_ with the ghost invasion."

"Ambrose sent a level one instead of just ringing up a Grandmaster Wizard, or better yet, doing it himself?"

"…Yes…Bye, now." Valon stepped off the bridge and continues toward the Unicorn Way gate. "Private Stillson, correct?"

"None shall pass! Unicorn Way is off-limits. There are ghosts everywhere!"

"But Headmaster Ambrose told me to give this to you. I'm here to help with the invasion." Private Stillson stared at the wax seal and knew it was from Ambrose.

"Looks legit. I'll let you pass. Show that letter to Private Connelly in Unicorn Way." Valon entered the tunnel. Then he looked back.

"Gil, are you coming, or not" Gil, who is still on the bridge turns around to face the tunnel.

"No way! It's dangerous and scary and there are ghosts and—oh who am I kidding? Coming!" Valon and Gil walked into the tunnel together. "This is so awesome! I can't believe I'm actually on Unicorn Way! The Life attributed street of Wizard City!"

"Life attributed?" Valon replied.

"Yeah. Don't you know about attributes? Check your forearm." Valon rolled up his sleeve and looked. There was a grey skull on his forearm. "Aahhh…You're a Death Attributed Wizard. I'm a Myth Type. You know, fairy tales and stuff? It's actually real. And I'm one of those lucky few who can control them. Only problem with being a Myth student is that the professor is a real pain in the-"

"Ah, a letter from the Headmaster!" Valon and Gil weren't watching where they were going, and stumbled right into Private Connelly.

"You must be Private Connelly." Valon said.

"Indeed, I am. You know, you are very brave to bring this letter to me. Be careful going farther down Unicorn Way. The street is dangerous. I've seen Wizards like you go down that way and never come back." After that was said, Valon's watch rang. He looked at it and saw the green bar had filled up.

"You leveled up!" Gil said. Valon's watch glowed and an image of Headmaster Ambrose appeared.

"I see you've already increased in power! Excellent! However, that power must come with guidance. Return to my office. I'll then get you started with your enrollment. "

"Well, I guess I'm heading back to the Headmaster's place. You coming, Gil?" It seemed Gil was off in his own little world.

"You say something, Valon?" Valon chuckled to himself.

"Well, see you." Valon ran off to meet Ambrose. He returned to the office where he first appeared.

"My apologies for the excitement, young Wizard. There are forces at work making things…disorderly. Welcome, now to the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts. Now, on to your enrollment. There are seven magic instructors here in Ravenwood. You should visit each of them to get to know them better. First you must find the Ravenwood Tunnel. The main schoolhouses are there circling the Great Tree, Bartleby. Return to me when you're finished." Ambrose said.

"Alright." Valon almost left the room when Ambrose called him again.

"Remember, young Wizard, even though you are a Death Wizard, you must also look into a secondary school. Getting acquainted with all of the other professors will help you do this."

"Gotcha." Valon said before leaving. He found the tunnel and headed right through. It was amazing. Right in the middle was a huge tree with a mustache and a blue eye. Surrounding the tree were five school houses. "Hmmm. Where to start?"

"Right here!" A cane came almost out of nowhere and nearly shish-kabobed Valon. "Jolly good to meet you, new student. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Arthur Wethersfield." Valon just stared in amazement.

"T—T—Talking Dog!"

"As your first lesson, just remember not to let everything surprise you. I am originally from Marleybone, which is a much different world than this. As a lad, I was always interested in magic, but they don't practice magic in Marleybone. When I got older I spent many years studying here in Ravenwood. But for the past ten years I've been in Krokotopia. I came back to train students in a form of magic called 'Sorcery' that deals with the balance of all things. It is more advanced than the other schools and harder to master, but its power is unbelievable! Come by later if you want to learn more. Cheers!" Valon turned from the talking dog. He turned toward one of the school houses. It was placed over a body of water. There was a cloud right above it. Lightning flashed and rain poured from it. Right next to it was a soggy tree with a face. Valon went into it. It looked like an average classroom except for the glowing caldron, the chalk writing on the board by itself, and the well-dressed frog sitting at the teacher's desk.

"I don't suppose you know where I could find the professor of this class, do you?" Valon said to the frog. The frog immediately jumped from his chair onto the table.

"Ah! A new student!" The frog held out his cane instead of a hand…Valon shook the cane as if it were a hand. "Welcome to the School of Storm, also known as Divination! For those who have chosen to master this magic are known as Diviners. I am Professor Halston Balestrom, master inventor! Oh, yes, and professor of Storm Magic. Who can master the power of the Storm Lords and the seas? Anyone who can harness their creativity. You look like a smart one! Check back when you are ready to start learning how to release your inner thunder!"

Valon slowly left the school house.

"Aw snap, what's with all the talking animals?" Valon continues walking. The Storm School's lake slowly became a frozen lake and the temperature turned glacial. Valon suspected he was nearing the School of Ice and he was correct. Inside was a small pixie dressed in blue wizard clothing.

"Welcome, dear. I am Lydia Greyrose, your Ice Magic Professor. Ice Magic, or Thaumaturgy, is not for the impatient or flighty! My goodness, no! You'll need to study hard to learn Ice Magic, but I am sure you will be great at it. And I always offer a hand if you need it. Come see me later when you are ready to begin your lessons. You have much to learn from ice!" Valon thanked her and left.

"A pixie professor…I don't believe it." Valon felt the temperature rising. There were torches lit everywhere. "Ahhh…the Fire School…" He walked in to find a tall slender woman with flaming hair. No, literally, her hair was on fire.

"Hello. Welcome to the School of Fire. I'm Madame Falmea. Ah, yes, you're a new student here. You definitely have that spark about you. Here I instruct students how to be powerful Pyromancers. But fire can be quite dangerous. We must not be rash, lest we destroy that which we mean to achieve. Come see me after you have finished your tour. I'm always up for fanning the flames so students can learn more about Pyromancy." Valon thanked her and left.

"Well, at least she's human." He mumbled to himself. He was so overwhelmed, that he wasn't even watching where he was going.

"Whoa! Hey, guy, watch where you're going!" Valon turned around to face whoever was grabbing the back of his robe.

"Watch out for what?" Valon asked. He turned back around. What did he see? A large gaping chasm that led to a deep dark abyss. "Okay…watch out for that…" the boy who was holding him over the chasm pulled him back onto the ground.

"You're looking for the Death School right?"

"Yeah, apparently I'm a student of Death."

"You're a Necromancer. Well you found where the school used to be. This gaping chasm is all that's left after it was torn from Ravenwood. It is said that Malistaire, the Death Professor, caused it to disappear. I'm not sure what happened to the school but you'll find many rumors around town about it. Oh, I'm Malorn Ashthorn. I don't mean to boast, but I used to be one of Malistaire's top students. Now, I'm almost all that's left, so I try to teach the new students. So, if you want, I can teach you some Death spells, or Necromancy. If you're up for it, stop by any time." Valon thanked him then headed over to another school house. He noticed this one was colored the same colors that Gil wore. Valon walked into the room. Inside was a grown man who seemed quite familiar.

"Let me guess…Another Conjurer want-to-be taking the Ravenwood tour? How quaint." The professor shook his head in frustration. "I wish they would send us some adept pupils for once…Well, if you wish to _attempt_ to learn some Myth spells, come back later and I will see how well you pay attention. Now, leave me alone." Valon just left.

"Man, what a grouch." Valon mumbled to himself. He walked into the next school. "Well, at least he's humaaaann…" Valon stared in amazement, as the next professor was a cow.

"Welcome, my dear young Wizard. I am Moolinda Wu, professor of the School of Life. This school celebrates the living, ever-green power of creation and vitality. If you listen carefully to your surroundings, you'll hear Life Magic all around. Just a few notes can lift one's troubles, purify one's spirit, and restore life. Soon I will teach you how. Come visit me when you're ready to learn more." I slowly backed out of the school house, crashing into someone.

"Y'know, you've got quite the knack for crashing into people." Valon looked and saw that it was Gil. They got up.

"Well, well, well…What have we here? The noob's taking the Ravenwood tour. Hey, officer, I heard you've been messing around in Unicorn Way." It was Mason again.

"Yeah. The privates opened the gate for Valon."

"Wait a minute…What's so special about this scarab? They let him in and not me?" Valon was seething.

"That's it! It's my first day here! Why are you being such a jerk?" Valon took out his wand. Gil held him back. A crowd began to form around them.

"Dude, don't do something you'll regret! He's not worth it!" Mason chuckled and began to walk away, calling Valon and Gil chickens.

"You know what, Gil? You're right. That guy wouldn't stand a chance against someone who beat _two_ of Malistaire's minions!" Valon said, unnecessarily loud. The entire crowd froze and stared at Valon. Mason turned around.

"So…The scarab thinks he's faced Malistaire. He's also questioned my skill. That sounds like a challenge…"

"Call it what you want. You're going down either way." Then Gil jumped in again.

` "Hey, guys, students dueling students is prohibited unless you're in a student vs. student arena. You both could get expelled if the professors find out!" Valon turned back to Mason.

"Midnight?" he said.

"Fine. Right here in Ravenwood." Mason said.

"Aw snap…" Gil said as he slapped his forehead.


	3. Facin' Mason

**Chapter 3**

**Facin' Mason**

Gil nervously paced Valon's dorm room staring at the clock that read 11:52.

"I don't believe you're doing this…" he said.

"I'm gonna be fine" Valon replied

"And you lied! I don't believe you told everyone that you defeated two of Malistaire's minions!"

"I didn't lie, okay? Would you stop worrying? I'm going to be fine."

"You don't know that. Mason is ruthless when it comes to noobs. Not only that, but a teacher could find out. We're not supposed to duel outside of the Student vs. Student arena."

"Why?" Valon asked.

"Well, in a duel, the monsters are real and they attack with all of their ferocity when they're summoned. In the Student vs. Student arena, the monsters and attacks are holographic. It's a clever way to let students practice their dueling skills. The arena used to just be for dueling fun, but now that Malistaire and his minions have invaded, it helps us to train for warring against them." Valon stood up.

"So you mean that this guy's attacks will actually hurt me…?" Valon's voice trailed off and without waiting for an answer, he rushed to the window. He saw crowds of people flooding out of the dorm rooms.

"You better get out there." Gil said. "You don't wanna build up a reputation as a chicken." Valon left his dorm room, headed down the hall and down the stairs to the first floor where he exited the dorm. As Valon walked out of the dorm, a crowd was awaiting him. He heard constant comments like, 'You've got no chance!', 'What a noob!', 'You shouldn't have messed with Mason', 'He'll kill you.'

Valon found his way to Mason. The rings encircled Valon's feet as well as Mason's while the larger circle with the swirling vortex in the middle formed. As the large ring formed, the crowd fought to be right on the invisible wall so they could see the duel better.

"I think I'll start. You'll need every advantage you can get so I'll pass." Mason said. Both decks shot out a hand of cards that floated in front of their faces. Valon grabbed one of the cards.

"Rednuht Ekans!" Said Valon as he threw the card into the air. A large snake fell from the sky. It inhaled, then breathed lightning. Mason grunted as the electricity zapped through his entire body. Mason's Health dropped from 504 to 339. "You passing just gave me the advantage over you."

"My turn again. Fle Erif." Mason dropped his card into the vortex. From the vortex a giant tree grew. A small elf jumped out of the tree. He took an arrow from the quiver on his back and put it into his bow. The arrow caught on fire and the elf shot it at Valon. The arrow pierced Valon's arm and continued to burn. Valon looked at his watch and saw the arrow only did 50 damage. His health was now 424. The pain from the burning arrow ripped through another 70 of Valon's health leaving him with 354. Valon could barely move his arm to toss his card.

"Pmi…" he said weakly. A small Imp appeared. It sang notes sour enough to lower Mason's Health to 259. Murmurs from the crowd could be heard. People were wondering how the noob was doing so well against Mason.

"Tac Erif." Said Mason. The Fire Cat appeared, and tackled Valon and burst into flames. Valon's health was left at 234. He then felt the pain of the burning arrow again, reducing his health to 164.

"Elteeb Tsorf." Said Valon as he summoned enough strength to toss the card into the vortex. The field became coated in ice and the Frost Beetle appeared. It blasted Mason with freezing air and hail. Mason's health was reduced to 144. The arrow burned Valon once more before disintegrating. That combined with Mason's Imp left Valon with a sparse 14 health. Valon chuckled.

"What's funny?" Mason asked. "You're doomed."

"That's what you think. See, I may have only 14 health points, but it's my turn to attack you."

"No way!"

The crowd began to get excited. They had never seen a new guy beat a guy like Mason. Valon was as excited as he was weak. He mustered up all his strength and took a card from his hand.

"This is the end for you, Mason." Valon declared.

"This can't be happening!" Mason exclaimed. Valon threw the card into the air. Every person in the crowd was in shock. Mason was watching his whole world come tumbling down. Gil watched in amazement. Valon was ready to release his monster, but just as he began to chant the spell, the card Valon threw turned black and shriveled up. The card exploded into ash and sprinkled the field. Valon just stared off into space. He couldn't believe what had just happened. His card had no effect on Mason. Valon was completely mesmerized. He didn't even realize Mason's maniacal laughter. Valon came to as a jolt of electricity blasted away his last bit of health. Valon collapsed as the field disappeared. Mason chuckled smugly and walked off. "You weren't worth my time." He said. Gil rushed to Valon and knelt by him. The tired crowd dispersed.

"Is he okay?" a voice asked. Gil looked around and noticed a girl who stayed behind.

"He took a pretty heavy hit, especially since he only had 14 health points left. He should start regaining health soon, though. I'd say a good night's rest and he'll be fine.

**A/N: Sorry it took so long. There are a lot of things that need to be considered to get the desired results in a duel. And sorry this chapter is shorter than usual, but I just wanted this chapter to be centered around this duel and since Valon and Mason are so low leveled, there wasn't much excitement.**


	4. The Next Morning

**Chapter 4**

**The Next Morning**

Valon's eyes lazily drifted open. He looked around and noticed it was morning.

"Aw snap! I fell asleep and missed the duel with Mason!" He jumped out of bed and looked out the window. He noticed Gil at the Ice School. He took a quick shower and rushed outside. "Gil, what happened last night? I remember you being with me in my dorm, so why didn't you wake me up?"

"Wake you up?" Gil questioned. "You didn't fall asleep last night."

"But I don't remember creaming Mason last night."

"Yeah…that's because…you diddn't…" Gil said nervously. Valon just stared at Gil for a second.

"…Wait, what?"

"Well, you almost won…You would've destroyed Mason, but when it came down to it, your card fizzled."

"Fizzle?"

"On every card, there's a circle with a percentage in in. Y'know, 70 percent, 100 percent, yadda yadda. That means that the card you choose will only work that percent of the time. When it doesn't work, it shrivels up and turns to ash."

"Wait…You mean to tell me I could have destroyed the creep that gave me such a hard time on my first day here, AND I LOST DUE TO MERE CHANCE THAT THE CARD WOULDN'T WORK!"

"Yeah, that's about the size of it."

"I don't believe this! Whatever. All I need to know is that if it wasn't for poor accuracy, I would have beaten him. Wait, why are you standing out here?"

"I'm waiting for Tina."

"Who-na?"

"Tina stayed behind last night after you lost and the crowd dispersed. She helped me get you in bed so your health could refill. She told me that she would meet me after class."

"Class…Aw snap! I was supposed to sign up for classes yesterday. Okay, I'm a Necromancer, and Headmaster Ambrose said something about a…"

"Secondary school?" Gil interjected.

"Yeah! Now if I'm a Necromancer, I wonder what the best secondary school for me would be…Maybe Life!"

"That may not be such a great strategic move." Gil stated.

"Why not?"

"Well, Necromancy focuses on stealing health from enemies, so you'll most likely be able to take care of healing yourself without life magic."

"Well, what about Balance?"

"Balance…Balance is basically a combination of all forms of magic. So it's kind of like every Balance Spell is only one sixth as powerful as all of the other schools."

"What's your secondary school?"

"Well, I chose Life. I think I'd go with Divination if I were you."

"Divination…It rings a bell, but…"

"Divination is Storm Magic. Because I feel like Necromancy is perfectly split between healing and average strength. However Divination focuses solely on strength. It is the most brutal of all types of magic. I think it compliments Necromancy nicely. It's kind of like you'll be working on two thirds power. And then the other third is focused on healing, but you'll be stealing that health from enemies, so it'll still be damaging your opponent."

"Hmm…I guess it would be a strategic move. Alright, I'll go with Divination as my secondary school. I'm gonna go tell Ambrose."

Just then, the door to the Ice School opened, and Wizards exited.

"Gil, what's up?" A voice said. A girl came out of the building and looked at Valon.

"Hi, Valon." She said.

"Hi…Tina?" Valon guessed that was Tina.

"Are you feeling better?" Valon looked at his watch.

"Fine, I guess. My health has fully refilled."

"Well, I'd hope so. You slept like a baby as soon as your body touched that bed." Gil laughed.

"Okay…I'm starting to feel like a third wheel. I'm just gonna go see the Headmaster. I'll see you two later." Valon ran off. Once he exited the tunnel that led to the Commons, he ran to Ambrose's office. "Headmaster Ambrose, I'm back for my class schedule."

"Good! Now you know where all your classes are held! I hope you were successful in choosing a secondary school."

"Yes, sir. I chose Divination as my secondary school."

"Excellent choice, young Wizard. Now, until you are a level 10, you will have to learn with Malorn Ashthorn every day from nine A.M. to ten A.M., and then you will have class at the Storm School with Professor Balestrom for the next half hour. The rest of the day shall be yours to roam free about Wizard City. You have today off, so if you want, you can wonder about to see what all Wizard City has to offer. I should mention though, there have been some strange events around town. Nothing serious…Nothing that a promising Wizard like you couldn't handle. Here, take this." Merle handed Valon a piece of paper with a large 1 on it.

"What's this?"

"That, young Wizard, is a Training Point. While you are studying in your secondary school, your professor cannot teach you a Spell because that is not the school you belong to. However, these slips of paper hold a magical essence that makes the Spell your trying to learn act as a creature from whatever school you belong to long enough for you to master the Spell."

"So your saying I could go ask Professor Balestrom to teach me a new Spell right now?"

"Yes. Just remember that some professors make you reach a certain level before they let you train for a new Spell. Halston's class should be out by now. Why don't you go ask him?"

"Thank you, Headmaster." Valon left the office and headed back to Ravenwood. He knocked on the door of the Storm School and heard a faint 'Come in!' He walked in to see Halston Balestrom happily perched atop his desk.

"Oh, it's you. Hello, and welcome to the School of Storm. Am I to assume that you have chosen to honor yourself by taking up Divination as your secondary school?"

"Yes, sir. Headmaster Ambrose gave me this slip and told me to give it to you."

"Ah, a Training Point. What level are you, young Wizard?"

"I'm a level 2."

"Ah, then you qualify to learn my level 1 Spell. Think you can handle it without even taking a class?"

"Yes, sir."

"Okay…then come along with me." Halston hopped along with Valon following close behind to the tower right across from the school house. He simply waved his hand and in a flash of electricity, a Thunder Snake appeared. Halston, then tossed Valon a blank card. "Okay, young Wizard, this will be a true challenge for you. To capture the monster, you must somehow figure out a way to place the card on the monster's body. You will, then say Erutpac, then recite the name of the monster backwards. Ready? Attack!" The Thunder Snake rushed to Valon and wrapped its body around him. Electricity then bounced around the snake's body, shocking Valon to the core. Valon, paralyzed as he was, found the strength to smash his head against the snake's. It's grip around Valon loosened, giving him the split second opportunity to jump out of the snake's grip. Valon rushed toward the snake in an attempt to put the card on the snake's head. But it quickly swung its tail at Valon, smacking him into a wall. It shot a blast of lightning at Valon.

In fear, Valon rose his wand, which deflected the bolt right back at the snake, momentarily paralyzing it. Valon took the advantage and ran toward it. He slapped the card down on its head.

"Erutpac Ekans Rednuht!" Valon said. The snake began glowing and it turned to pure light. The light shot right into the card. Valon walked over to it and picked it up. It was a Thunder Snake Spell Card.

"Congratulations, young Wizard. You have mastered your first Storm Spell. And even without taking a class. You're a special one, yes you are. Now why don't you go test that out? I heard there's a ghost infestation on Unicorn Way. Valon ran out the tower and through the tunnel to the Commons. It was there that he ran into Gil. He was soaking wet.

"What happened to you?"

"Well, let's see, I was hanging out with Tina when that jerk that you almost beat shoved me right into the lake." Valon grimaced.

"_Mason. _Where is that underhanded wad of Troll spit? I'll pound him into the dust so hard, he'll wind up back on Earth! I just got a new Spell from Professor Balestrom and I'm ready to do some serious dueling!"

"So you learned some Divination, did you? Well would you mind whipping up a wind storm to dry me off? I'd let Tina do it, but she can only conduct freezing wind which would freeze me to death. Now if I were you, I would steer away from Mason. You just got trounced by him last night. Why don't you go to Unicorn Way and help with that ghost infiltration; It'll make you stronger so that when next you two duel, you can be ready.

"Hey, guys." Said Tina.

"Hey, Tina." Valon responded.

"Do either of you want to join me at the fairgrounds tonight to watch the fireworks?"

"I will." Gil said eagerly. Valon quietly chuckled.

"Well, I guess I'll let you two enjoy that. I'm going to get spend the day working on my skills." Valon said as he turned around and began to walk toward the Unicorn Way tunnel. "…Enjoy your date."

"_Date?_" Gil and Tina said in unison.

**A/N: **I would just like to point out that since this story was thought of in mid-2010, the newer aspects of Wizard 101 such as planting, advanced pets and Celestia will not be included in this story.


	5. The Undead

**Chapter 5**

**The Undead**

Valon roamed Unicorn Way in search of the Lost Souls that Private Connelly was talking about. He was walking on the sidewalk, though. He decided that the ghosts weren't showing up because the sidewalks were magically charmed to resist Malistaire's evil monsters. So Valon stepped off of the sidewalk and as soon as he did, a ring formed around his feet. He was pulled to the middle of the street where the entire battlefield began to form. A pale ghost appeared at the other end of the field.

"You must be a Lost Soul." Valon said. The soul said nothing. "Nothing to say, huh? Well you won't have anything to say after this! Time to take this new card for a spin! Ekans Rednuht!" Valon threw the card and it burst into ash. "WHAT?" Valon roared. "Again?" Valon remembered how he could've won the battle with Mason if it hadn't been for a fizzle. The Lost Soul waved its cloaked arms and casted the Ice Beetle at Valon which did 74 points of damage to him leaving him with 400. "I'm not letting that happen again…I've got to go with a card that has high accuracy. Pmi!" Valon shouted. The Imp appeared and sung its sour notes to the Lost Soul. The Lost Soul was sucked into the swirling vortex at the center of the field. "What? These things can be destroyed by just an Imp? They must be the weakest of Malistaire's minions. This is gonna be fun…"

Valon searched the street for the nearest Lost Soul he could find. He destroyed it with one Fire Cat. The third was defeated with a Dark Sprite. Valon thought 3 was enough so he went back to Private Connelly.

"That's turned the tide for us! Thanks to you, more Wizards have followed your lead and started fighting against the Lost Souls as well. If only we knew what's causing the spread of the undead."

"Thanks, Private Connelly. I'll just be on my way." Valon said.

"Wait. You got a minute? I'm worried. I haven't seen my friend Private O'Ryan in a while. We both grew up here, you see, and he just wanted to make sure the Skeletal Pirates hadn't gotten into his old house. He could be trapped in the house, but I can't leave my post. Please find him and help him get back to safety."

"Skeletal Pirates?" Valon questioned.

"Well," Connelly responded. "As the name implies, the Skeletal Pirates are skeleton pirates. You'll find them if you go farther down Unicorn Way."

"Okay." Valon accepted the challenge. He journeyed down Unicorn Way. He went farther than when he fought the ghosts. He thought they were all he'd see, but just as Connelly said, the pirate skeletons were roaming the streets. Valon stuck to the sidewalk as he continued down the street. He noticed one of the Skeletal Pirates wasn't moving. It was standing on the street in front of a building. Valon instantly assumed that was O'Ryan's house. He stepped up to face the pirate. The battle field formed around them. He was able to defeat the pirate with a simple Blood Bat. The door creaked open as Valon slowly inched into the house. He found a light switch and flipped the lights on, but as soon as he turned around, he found a spear pointed to his neck.

"Who are you?" The man wielding the spear demanded. Valon thought it was O'Ryan.

"I'm Valon Hawk! I'm here to save you from the Skeletal Pirates. Private Connelly sent me here to rescue them."

"Wait…" O'Ryan said as he lowered the spear. "You're a Wizard aren't you…?"

"Yeah…I just found out recently."

"Let me see your wrist." O'Ryan said as he pointed the spear toward Valon's wrist. Valon roled up his robe's sleeve to reveal the grey skull symbol branded on his wrist.

"Ah…a Necromancer. You are a Wizard." O'Ryan lowered the spear. "Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes? Once I got back to my home, I cleared it out of Skeletal Pirates. Unfortunately, now they're gathering outside like there's no tomorrow. This spear's not enough to take on all those skeletons." Valon thought for a moment.

"I've got it! What if we both fought the Skeletal Pirates? I can duel them using my magic and you can go out there and swing that spear like crazy."

"Sounds crazy enough to work…Let's do it. The two stormed out of the building to face the pirates.

Meanwhile, back in the Commons, Gil and Tina were looking all through the shopping district. They found their way to Sven's Wand Shop.

"So, Tina, which wand do you think I'd look the coolest with?" Gil said looking through the wands.

"I believe that's my call to make." Said the shop's vendor. "Name's Sven Stonebreaker. I think I know the perfect wand for you. You're a Conjurer, right?"

"That's right." Gil said.

"Then you might want to try this one." Sven handed Valon a thin box. Gil opened it and saw the wand within. It was a Golden wand with a brown leather handle and a light blue crystal on top. "It's called the Razorwire Wand." Sven stated.

"How much?" Gil asked.

"Well, normally it's 240 pieces of gold, but for you…140." Gil pulled a sack filled with small gold coins. Sven pulled out a glass bowl half-full of gold. Gil poured 140 pieces of gold into the bowl.

"By the way," Tina said as they left the store. "I was gonna say you looked really cool with _that_ wand."

"Y'know, it's getting late. Don't you think we should head for the fairgrounds?"

"Yeah, I guess." She said. They headed back to the Commons and then to the Fair Grounds. As the sun receded into the horizon, fireworks lit up the sky. As if it had a mind of its own, Gil's hand held Tina's. It went on like this for about fifteen minutes. Then rogue firework shot all throughout the Commons and blasted through the Unicorn Way tunnel. A large explosion could be seen and pink fireworks shot everywhere. After that was over, Tina and Gil looked at each other. She looked into his eyes. He looked into hers. They found themselves leaning in, their lips within inches, but then Valon showed up in nothing but his underwear.

"What happened to you?" Gil questioned.

"Mind your own business. You're just lucky I got Connelly and O'Ryan back together and they taught me a spell to re-conjure clothes that were burnt off my body by fireworks…"


	6. Secrets

**Chapter 6**

**Secrets**

A dark room…faintly glowing…the glow coming from a crystal ball…and a voice coming from the crystal ball, as well.

"Yes…before my plan takes effect, I must have my revenge…on _him_..." the crystal ball stated.

"Don't worry, master. He is week. Even if he did destroy your minions on Unicorn Way, he'll never get past anything else. I've also taken extra measures…If you recall the pixies of that particular street…?" A voice in the darkness responded.

"Go on…"

"They're under your control, now."

"Excellent…"

"Yes, he'll never get past them…even with the help of that pathetic Lady Oriel.

"You are truly an asset to my plan…"

"Yes, master. Placing me into Ravenwood was just as clever as placing a virus into an enemy. With your guidance, I will deteriorate Ravenwood from the inside out just like a virus."

"Now…I am sure this pixie plan of yours shall succeed…"

"Yes, master."

"…But…should it fail…"

"It won't fail! Even if Unicorn Way isn't enough, I've released a fleet of your minions across all of the streets Wizard City has to offer!"

"_SCILENCE! _The intention of my questioning was not to imply your failure! But the boy is strong…chances mustn't be taken with him."

"_If_…it fails, I shall target his friends. Their disposal will weaken him to the point that _I _won't even have to _try_ to defeat him."

"Ah…so _you_ plan to duel him…"

"I don't plan to duel him…I plan to _crush_ him…"

Valon awoke from his sleep. After that little firework mishap and all those ghosts and pirates he fought, rest was well-needed, especially since today was his first day of classes. Malorn Ashthorn is a wonderful teacher. The first couple of minutes was totally normal, but then…he came to this.

"Valon…you must always remember to stay true to yourself…Being a Necromancer means it's harder and harder to resist the dark side. Do you remember Ma…Mal…Malist…Malistaire? He used to be the Death teacher here…then…he went bad. He created the Spells known in the Wizard world as…the 'Seven Deadly Spells'. Any use of any of these Spells could lead to the use of more…and more…and then…your heart is filled with darkness. Those who use one Spell tend to become obsessed with the rest…then it takes over their whole life."

"Do you know any."

"I am not supposed to tell students…but you…I don't know why…but you seem different…" Malorn drew his wand and pointed it to a cricket on the ground. "I know only three." He took a deep breath. "Ensium!" Malorn chanted. A track of blue energy connected the cricket to the wand. The blue energy disappeared. "Jump." Malorn said. The cricket jumped. "The mind controlling Spell. Malistaire normally uses this Spell to control others to make them do his bidding. Why do you think all those monsters were roaming Unicorn Way? The second Spell I know is…" Malorn pointed the wand at the cricket again. "Corusium." A purple beam shot at the cricket this time. The cricket began to squeal in agonizing pain while squirming on the ground. "He uses this, the torturing Spell to get answers from his foes. And this is the last one I am aware of…" Malorn rose his wand once again. "Lorinium." A black beam shot the cricket and it dropped to the ground. And its soul arose from its body. "If a person's will is too strong to be controlled and they resist torment, then there's this…extracting one's soul from their body. Usually the soul is locked in a place where it is subjected to evil and cruel ways and nothing but an immense amount of torment. The body can be used for anything the user wants. These Spells are normally irreversible, but there was one little glitch Malistaire didn't bother fixing. The Spell can be reversed if the caster of the Spell is defeated in a duel."

"Why didn't he fix that?"

"Well, he figured no one could ever beat him in a duel. Only one person has ever faced him and lived…"

"Who was it?"

"…Ambrose."

"Wow, really?"

"Yes. Ambrose faced Malistaire in a duel, once and beat him. All the damage Malistaire had done at that point was reversed. Unfortunately, now Ambrose is old and Malistaire is more powerful than ever. He has, by now recreated all the dark forces that once threatened to destroy the Spiral." Valon just couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Valon…I think we're done here."

Valon went off to Halston's class, and while it was very 'shocking', he could not take his mind off of what he had just heard from Malorn.

After his Divination class, Valon almost immediately left, but before he left, he saw a bolt of lightning. It hit the bottom of somebody's boot, and they fell to the ground. The crowd of Wizards leaving the school house laughed and called out things like, 'Loser', and 'Klutz'. As caring as Valon was, he couldn't just let the boy lie there on the ground. He rushed over to the boy.

"Hey, there." He said as he helped pick up the boy's books.

"Hi. Y'know, you don't have to stay and help. I saw you were obviously in a hurry."

"Don't worry about it. I'm just a little frazzled."

"About what?"

"I don't think I'm supposed to talk about it. Everyone around here gets kind of alarmed when Malistaire is mentioned." Valon instantly wished he could take back what he said.

"Malistaire? The 'Death Lord'? Wait…You're that guy…the one who fought Mason…You said you faced minions of Malistaire."

"Yeah, that's me. Valon Hawk."

"Gritt Louis. Or probably better known as Great Loser… I'm new.

"Ah…so your first day was about as good as mine."

"Yup…That Mason character ensured that everybody at this school thought I was the biggest loser ever."

"Well, you seem cool to me. And anyone who Mason hates so much is A-Okay with me." The two stood to their feet and walked while talking. "Mason is nothing but bad news."

"Speaking of bad news…I heard all the pixies on Unicorn Way are going bad."

"Unicorn Way? I thought I sponged that place clean of evil yesterday."

"Well, the street was nice and peaceful for about three and a half hours."

"Maybe I'll head over there."

"Wait…"Gritt said. He dug through his robes. "Here it is." He pulled out a small piece of technology. "Here, attach this to your Health Watch."

"What is it?" Valon said, taking it."

"I developed a holographic imager device that projects the amount of Health your opponent has. This can help you in any duel because it lets you know how close you are to defeating an enemy." Valon clicked the device onto his watch.

"You invented this?"

"Yup."

"Awesome."

"Hey, Valon, what's up?" said Gil from behind. Valon turned around. "Did you hear about the pixies on Unicorn Way?"

"Yeah…I'm headed there right now." Valon responded.

Once again, we see a dark room with a faintly glowing crystal ball.

"He's heading to Unicorn Way, master…" the voice in the dark said.

"…And Oriel?" the crystal ball said.

"Weakened, just like you asked. Soon she will cease to exist.

"Good…As the guardian of Unicorn Way's pixies, when she's gone they'll all be ours. Even the foolish ones who chose not to join us."

"Soon they'll quiver in fear and beg for mercy…Now what of the boy?"

"He has found the heir…"

"What? How could you let that happen?"

"I did everything in my power, but…"

"It doesn't matter. He will fall before he realized who he is. Just make sure you keep an eye on him. If he is around the boy too much, he might be led to figure out who he is…"


	7. Rogue Fairies

**Chapter 7**

**Rogue Fairies**

Valon, Gritt, and Gil ran to Unicorn Way. As they were running past Unicorn Park, a young man dressed in green stopped them.

"Where do you think you're going? I came here to see if the Fairy rumors are true, but the guards won't let me through. If I can't go, than you shouldn't be able to either!"

"Sorry, man," said Valon, "But there's really nothing you can do, or say to stop us." The trio ran past the boy and kept going down the street. They stuck to the sidewalks so they didn't have to waste their time with ghosts or skeletons. Luckily, thanks to Valon, there weren't even many ghosts or skeletons left on Unicorn Way. That's when they came to the part of the street inhabited completely by Fairies. However there was something different about these fairies. They were dark and looked evil.

"You guys ready?" Valon asked.

"Ready." Gritt and Gil said in unison. The three jumped onto the street. A circle formed around all three of them. And a battlefield appeared, also encircling three Dark Fairies.

"Whoa, I've never been part of a three on three match before." Said Valon. The Dark Fairies started the duel. The first cast a Lifeblade Spell on the third Dark Fairy. The second cast a Life Trap on Valon. The third attacked physically.

"With the help of Lifeblade and Life Trap, that physical attack will gain a total of 65 percent more power!" Said Gil who takes Life as his secondary school.

"Oh, fantastic…" Said Valon. The Dark Fairy struck Valon and he lost 148 Health Points. He was left with 326.

"You okay?" Gil asked.

"I'm fine as long as it's our turn."

"Yeah, it's our turn. And I'll start us off. Noinim Melog!" A dark aura began to surround the center of the field. Once it disappeared, a wooden dummy stood in its place. Then it ran to the vacant area next to Gritt.

"What is that thing?" he asked.

"It's a Myth thing. Meet my Golem Minion."

"Aw Snap! That is so cool!" said Valon. "So you can summon one of those things to help us duel?"

"Exactly! Now it's three on four! Take it away, Valon!"

"With pleasure!" Out of all the cards in Valon's hand, he chose the one that he trusted the least. "Ekans Rednuht!" For once the Thunder Snake worked, zapping 100 points away from the first Dark Fairy. Thanks to Gritt's holographic imager, Valon saw that the Dark Fairy only had 35 Health Points left. And the other two had all 135.

"Gritt, your hologram thingy works!"

"Are you surprised?" Gritt said. "My move! Tac Erif!" The Fire Cat appeared and attacked the same Fairy Valon did. After all its points were gone, it burst into dust. "One down, two to go! Now to see what this minion can do." The minion jumped to the center of the field and attacked the second Dark Fairy physically, dealing 90 points of damage.

The Fairies nodded at each other as if they had a team strategy. They started by having the first one attack the minion. It stopped moving as if it returned to being an inanimate object. It dropped to the ground and then was absorbed by the vortex in the middle of the field. Then the second attacked Gritt with a Blood Bat, blasting away 90 Health Points and leaving him with 310.

"Oh, what? Just cause I destroyed your friend?" Said Gritt. The Faries snarled at him. "Gil, show 'em whose boss!"

"No prob! Tab Doolb!" Gil summoned the Blod Bat who was able to destroy the second Dark Fairy. And last but not least, the combined force of Valon and Gritt's monsters were enough to destroy the last Dark Fairy. After the field was gone, Gil took off down the street. The other two followed.

"Gil, might I ask where we're going?" Valon called after him.

"To the Hedge Maze! Lady Oriel is in trouble!"

"Who-riel?"

"Lady Oriel is a Seraph, and the guardian of the Fairies!"

The trio came to the end of Unicorn Way. A large set of double doors stand in between them. The pushed through the doors. They saw Lady Oriel, but they couldn't believe it. The Seraph was shriveled and sickly looking. Her skin was pale grey and her hair was similarly scraggly and grey. Her dress was tattered and torn. Her wings lay limp on the ground, and a rusty worn sword lay next to her.

"Who are you?" Valon asked referring to the young Wizard sitting next to Lady Oriel with a concerned look on her face.

"I'm Luna. Who are you?"

"I'm Valon. This is Gil and Gritt. We're here to help Lady Oriel."

"That's why I'm here."

Lady Oriel began to weakly groan and shake. She gathered enough strength to sit up and address the trio.

"Praise the light! Someone has come at last! Something has been corrupting my Fairies. Since you have come in my hour of need, use this in future duels. A Seraph Treasure Card appeared in front of Valon, Gil and Gritt. Lady Oriel turned greyer and even more wrinkled.

"Lady Oriel! What just happened?"

"Thank you for coming at this dark time. If you are as brave as you look, I know you will help my Fairies…" Lady Oriel laid her head on the ground and her eyes shut.

"You guys have to help her! She gave you three the last bit of strength she had by giving you those cards."

"Well, what are we supposed to do?" asked Valon.

"Go back out there and collect the Fairy Dust that's dropped when they blow up. It can help me to understand why they're going bad." Luna responded.

"You got it, let's go, guys!" said Valon. After about thirteen minutes they came rushing back to Luna.

"Has Oriel said a word?" a concerned Gritt asked.

"No. did you get the Fairy Dust?"

"Of course." He tossed her a small sack. She opened it and looked obviously shaken.

"They've been enchanted by something Undead…The Bone Cages…"

"The what cages?" asked Valon.

"The Bone Cages…I noticed them hung all around the street. They must be corrupting the Fairies."

"Well, let's go find them and destroy them!"

"Alright, let's go!" said Luna as she stood. The four ran throughout all of Unicorn Way. Discovering empty Bone Cages and Bone Cages containing Fairies groaning in pain. The four knocked the cages off their posts, destroying every one they could find. They ran back to the Hedge Maze as fast as their legs could carry them. Once they pushed open the double doors, an extremely bright light engulfed them all. Once the light had disappeared, Lady Oriel, as the four had gotten to know her, was gone. The new Lady Oriel, who floated in the air. She was full and beautiful. Her skin peachy and smooth. Fiery hair draped her shoulders. And her wings were snowy white and shone with a glow that reflected off her golden sword.

Before they could address this new Lady Oriel, a small Fairy named Rosanda called them.

"Thank you for helping out the Fairies. They did not mean to be evil, but the corruption made them do bad things. Now there is hope again and the Fairies will be able to bring magic and cheer to the people of Wizard City once more. Thank you." She flew off and Lady Oriel called them over to her.

"Thank you, four. The freed Fairies have already told me of your heroism. Your deeds will be remembered here on Unicorn Way. To show my appreciation, here is a healing spell. It will aid you in a time of need." All four of their decks glowed. Valon took his deck out and saw a Pixie Spell card on top of it. "We must now find out who is behind the corruption. My Fairies whispered of a monster whose bones made a clacking sound as it came for them. Do you remember the young man dressed in green in Unicorn Way? His name is Ceren Nightchant and he knows Unicorn Way very well. He will know if there is a sinister skeleton haunting my street…"


	8. Punishment

**Chapter 8:**

**Punishment**

Once again the crystal ball in the darkened room speaks to a hidden figure. "You have failed me…The Unicorn Way guardian, Oriel has been restored and the Fairies freed…"

"I know, master, but you must give me another chance…"

"Why should I?"

"The corruption of the Fairies has ended, but remembers the one who caused it in the first place…He's still roaming around."

"Yes…Rattlebones…The Spread of the undead may continue as long as he and Blackhope are still around. Even so, your failure to destroy him in the first place deserves punishment…Ensium!" In a flash, the entire room glowed. The blue light was blinding.

Back on Unicorn Way, Gil, Grit, Valon, and Luna were looking all throughout Unicorn Way for the sinister skeleton who supposedly was the one corrupting the Fairies. They all ran into each other in front of a building. While they were asking each other if they found him, yet, Mason showed up.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Valon. I see you're still here. I thought the Fairies got you, but you're still wandering around…" Mason looked over to Gritt. "Ah…the heir is a part of your little posse." Gritt looked confused and everyone turned to look at him. He wished he wasn't as tall as he was because he kind of wished he could shrink into a corner at this point.

"What do you want, Mason?" Valon finally asked.

"I'm here to tell you to leave the skeleton to me."

"I don't believe you. Someone like you would do everything in your power to keep the corruption going. Why would you want to help us stop it?"

"Listen to me, you impudent little-" Mason began to say. His eyes began to glow blue, which didn't go unnoticed by Valon. "What I meant to say was that while I'm training to be a Wizard, Wizard City is my home, and as long as this is my home, I will protect it." Mason said. The four just stared at him.

"That was the most un-Mason-like thing I've ever heard." Valon stated.

"Well, I-" just as Mason was about to finish his sentence, the door to the building they were all standing in front of opened. Mason and Valon began to glow. The light engulfed them both and then shot in through the door. The door slammed closed. Luna, Gritt and Gil began to tug on the door knob as hard as they could.

"We need to get in there to save Valon and Mason!" said Luna

"Forget Valon and Mason!" Gritt screamed, "I wanted to fight the skeleton!" he whined. "It would give me the perfect chance to practice my Divination."

"I'm sure you'll have your chance, Gritt. Y'know, I wanted the chance to practice my Life Magic. But I know that Valon is only a Level two and Mason is a Level five and they're stuck in there with that skeleton and we can't do anything." Luna looked down to see Gil sitting in the grass. "What are you doing?"

"I'm doing the one thing we _can _do…waiting for the door to open and them come out…or a maniacal skeleton bent on dominating this part of Wizard City."

"Y'know, Gil, our friend…and Mason…is stuck in there with an evil mastermind who's bent on ruling this part of Wizard City and you're just sitting and—oh, what the heck. We really can't do anything." Luna and Gritt both sat down in front of the door waiting for whoever came out.

Valon and Mason argued, blaming each other for being trapped in the building. They were both stopped dead in their tracks by the faint clacking and rattling that steadily grew louder. And then, there he was. The sinister skeleton, Rattlebones stood before them. He chuckled eerily.

"You cannot stop us, Wizards! The corruption of the Fairies is just beginning of Malistaire's plans. Soon, Wizard City will fall and there isn't anything anyone can do about it." He laughed a loud raspy laugh.

"Well…uh…I can stop you…" Said Valon, plainly. The crazy skeleton's cackling halted. He shot Valon with the coldest stare that he had ever seen. In an instant, the battle field formed around the skeleton, Valon, and Mason.

"Well…two against one isn't very fair, is it?" Pixie dust shot up out of the ground and a Dark Fairy emerged from it. And a second Dark Fairy emerged as well.

"Well three against two isn't fair either!" said Valon

"I know…" Said the skeleton.

Back outside, Tina had arrived to aid the group in their fight against the sinister skeleton. However, she was upset to find out the door was locked. She ended up sitting next to Gil outside also waiting for Valon to come out.

"So what do you think Mason meant when he called me the heir?" Asked Gritt.

"I don't know, Gritt. Maybe we'll find out one day." Said Luna. "Maybe once this is all over, we can visit the library."

"There's a library here?"

"…Oy…"

Back inside the building, the skeleton had passed to save up pips and Valon had destroyed one Dark Fairy with a Thunder Snake. It was Mason's turn, but he wasn't doing anything. A bead of sweat ran down his forehead. He inhaled deeply. His face scrunched up into a truly sad and pitiful expression. He raised his wand into the air.

"Ensium." A blue beam of light shot out of Mason's wand and shot the skeleton so hard in the head that its head spun. Valon looked at Mason with a look of horror.

"Mason! That was a Deadly Spell!" Mason responded by pointing his wand at Valon. "Whoa! What I meant to say was, use any Deadly Spell you want because you're awesome." Valon said in a frightened tone, trying to appease Mason so that he didn't steal his soul. Mason lowered his wand.

"My work here is done. Attack me, Rattlebones. Leave Valon alone." Mason threw his wand onto the ground. I'm defenseless.

Back outside, nothing had really changed. Luna and Gritt were trying to figure out the whole 'heir' thing by using a book Luna happened to have with her. Gil and Tina were sitting very closely together with Tina's head on his shoulder.

"So how do you think they're doing in there?" Gil asked.

"I don't know." Said Tina. "But I did see Valon and Mason dueling and they're both pretty tough customers. I think they can handle it."

"Think they're tough? You should see me duel."

"I can't wait."

Valon had taken out another Dark Fairy. Mason had many pips around his feet because he had passed every turn since performing the Deadly Spell on Rattlebones. Rattlebones had attacked Mason on every single one of his turns and now Mason was down to 100 points and he had a Death Trap circling him. Valon had a Pixie card in his hand.

"Mason, you have to take this card." He said

"What?" Said Mason in barely a whisper.

"This is a Pixie card. You can heal 400 points of your health with this."

"No, Valon…."

"_No?_"

"No, Valon!"

"Are you out of your mind? I'm trying to save you!"

"If you want to save me, than keep your card!"

"What? Why?"

"Because if I win this duel, I will be killed!"

"What are you talking about?"

"_He'll_ kill me…" Just at that moment, Valon's time to make his move ran out.

"Rattlebones, I pass! Finish me off!"

"Mason!" Rattlebones cackled.

"Luohg." He said. A zombie with a shovel rose from the ground and used its shovel to zap the life out of Mason. Mason screamed in pain and after the life was sucked out of him, he lay lifeless in his circle.

Back outside, the four others heard the scream.

"Do you think that was Valon?" Gil asked with his ear pressed against the door.

"I don't know…" said Tina. Just then, clicking could be heard on the other side of the door. The door creaked and it began to open. Tina and Gil backed away from the door.

"Wands at the ready!" Said Gritt pointing his wand at the door. The other three pointed their wands too. Once the door was open, Valon was the one who came out of the darkness with Mason draped over his shoulder.

"What happened?" Luna asked

"Where's the skeleton?" asked Gritt.

"Y'now what, guys…It's been a hard day…I fought Fairies, Skeletons, and a complete jerk is drooling on my robes. So if it's okay with you guys, I'm going to leave him here…go get someone to look after him…and then…I'm going…to bed." Valon set Mason in the grass and then left with the other four following. Once they were gone, Mason's health began to refill. His eyes opened and there was a sinister look in them. He pulled a small crystal ball.

"How was your punishment, young Wizard?"

"It was cruel and unfair and I…" Mason sighed. "It was well deserved, Master. I apologize for my failure and I will make up for it."

"Good…"

"Don't worry, Master. Valon Hawk will be…" Mason thought back to how Valon actually tried to help him in the duel.

"What is it, Mason?"

"Nothing, Master…Valon Hawk will be destroyed."

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. My computer was experiencing harsh viruses and even after it was fixed, I had the annoying end of the year stuff to deal with. But now I'm out of school and I will attempt to upload more often. (Remember the key word there is **_**attempt**_**.)**


	9. Blackhope, Part I

**Chapter 9**

**Blackhope, Part 1**

It was late at night on Unicorn Way, much past curfew. Although all Wizards were supposed to be in bed by now, but there was one who wasn't. The soldiers guarding Unicorn Way were in hot pursuit of the young Wizard. The Wizard pointed his wand at one of the two soldiers chasing him.

"Tanium!" He shouted. A green beam shot out of his wand and almost hit one of them.

"That kid just tried to use a stunning Spell!"

"That Spell's forbidden! It's one of those deadly seven! Get that kid!" The two guards continued to chase the Wizard with their spears aimed toward him. The Wizard shot another two green beams of light at the guards. The two guards were shot and fell to the ground motionless. "Dang…He got us…" Said the first guard.

"What do we do now?" Asked the second guard. They watched as the Wizard dressed in black continued running down the road. The Wizard walked into a building. He wasn't wearing his Wizard's cap or his robes. He was wearing a completely black jumpsuit with a turtle neck that was pulled over his mouth.

"Mason…" said a voice to him. He pulled down the turtle neck from over his mouth to speak.

"Blackhope…" Mason responded.

"Malistaire's Wizard servant is welcome here, but why are you here?"

"Servant?...Never mind. I'm here to request a potion from you."

"Which one."

"You know the one. The potion of death. The one that can kill anything you touch."

"That one…That one requires some very expensive ingredients." Mason unzipped his jumpsuit and pulled an extremely large bag out of it. He dropped it on the ground. He kicked it over, letting a glut of gold fall out of it.

"That should cover it. And, uh keep the change."

"Mason, before you go, I must ask, who is it you wish for me to kill."

"Oh, it's no who. It's what."

"What?"

"Unicorn Way! All of it. I want everything on the street dead as soon as possible. I don't want to see one green patch of grass, or clean body of water once you're done. If anyone rejects, I want them imprisoned. And if you see a Valon Hawk or his friends poking around here, kill them all." Mason left the building and chuckled to himself. "Let's see Valon and the heir stop me this time."

Valon was just getting out of Professor Halston's class. He marveled at the fact that since he face Rattlebones last week, he had become a level four, along with Gil, Tina and Luna. Gritt had become a level five. He had gotten a lot of experience because he traveled all over the place looking for something that had to do with 'the heir '. Valon was close enough to level five, though. The week had been going pretty normal. Well, except for Mason. Since the fight with Rattlebones, he had only been seen in class, and nowhere else. Even in class he seemed jumpy, and sort of crazy. No one had really paid any attention to it, anyways. He left Halston's class and met up with Gil who was just leaving his class with Moolinda Wu.

"Hey, Gil."

"Valon, hey. I think we should go to Unicorn Way later, just to check on things."

"I think so, too. Man, we really haven't hung out in a while, have we?"

"Hm, I guess you're right. I guess I've been spending a lot of my time…"

"A lot of your time with…Tina?" Valon grinned at Gil. "Hmmm? Y'know, the Halloween Bash will be here in a few days. Maybe you should ask her…Wait a minute, Halloween? Aw snap! My parents must be scared out of their minds."

"Oh, don't worry. Time flows _much _differently here than it does on earth."

"…How much differently?"

"…I'm not too sure…But don't worry, you'll never have to worry about time."

"Alright, let's meet up with the guys. We can discuss Unicorn Way over lunch."

"Okay, cool."

Valon and Gil met up with Tina, Luna and Gritt for lunch. After lunch, they were just sitting around the fountain in the shopping district.

"So, things are finally calm around here." Said Tina.

"Yeah, but after getting past the challenges in Unicorn Way, another one rises up." Said Gritt.

"Aw, still no luck with the heir thing?" Asked Gil.

"Nope, but I guess it's okay. I've been rising through the levels lately."

Just at that moment, a ruckus began to travel throughout the district. A young wizard girl ran throughout the district. While running, she tripped and fell into the fountain. Dark cloaked figures flew all throughout the district. People began running wild through the district screaming. Despite their horrid appearances, the cloaked figures didn't look as if they were harming anybody. They flew all through the district as if they were looking for something.

"Alright, check this out." Said Gritt bravely pointing his wand at one of the figures. A bolt of electricity shot out of his wand and at the figure, causing it to fall to the ground. All of the cloaked figures stopped what they were doing and looked at Gritt.

"Hey, buddy," said Valon nonchalantly. "They look a little peeved. You may wanna run." Gritt began to run away from the scene. The cloaked figures began moving toward the fountain. Gil and Tina helped the girl out of the fountain and all five of them began running alongside Gritt. They ran all throughout the shopping district together. Gil was running aside the girl he and Tina had just saved.

"Hey, my names Gil." He said as if they weren't running for their lives.

"Hey! I'm Gwen."

"Maybe you should just run in the opposite direction. Getting mixed up with our little group will probably get you killed!"

"You guys get that much action? Oh, I'm definitely hanging with you."

Gil turned to Tina. "Well she seems nice."

"Y'know Gil, I find it hilarious that you're acting like meeting someone for the first time in second grade while we're running for our lives!"

"I know, right! It's so cool!"

"…Yeah, it's kinda cool."

The six ran through the tunnel to the Commons with the flood of darkness following them. An arm reached out of the darkness and grabbed Gritt's neck. Gritt tried to resist so more arms came out of the darkness and also grabbed Gritt. They began to pull him up into the darkness. The other five grabbed his arms and legs and attempted to yank him back down. A translucent blue wall rushed toward the wave of darkness. Each and every cloaked figure disappeared as soon as the wall touched them. Once each figure was gone, the transparent wall, itself disappeared. After a couple seconds, Gritt fell with a loud thud to the ground. After the other five helped him up, they saw who the caster of the blue translucent wall was.

"Headmaster Ambrose." Said Valon.

"Are you children okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, we're fine." Said Gil.

The six young Wizards all went to Ambrose's office to tell Ambrose of what happened.

"Headmaster Ambrose, I thought areas like the shopping district were charmed to resist Malistaire's minions." Said Valon.

"Well, that's true, but the charm isn't impervious to minions summoned by other Wizards. My guess is that a certain individual may have been brainwashed or threatened to summon up those creatures for some evil purpose." Just then, the door flew open and Mason came through the door with an innocent look on his face.

"Headmaster Ambrose! You must come to Unicorn Way! Something terrible has happened!" Ambrose and the six Wizards ran through the door with Valon giving Mason a short scowl and receiving it right back as he headed out the door. Once they were all gone, Mason chuckled to himself.

"And the fly, or flies carelessly wander into the spider's web, never to be seen again." He pulled out his crystal ball. "Blackhope, they're heading your way. Are you ready?"

"How dare you insult me? I shall smite these pests. You'd do well to learn your place as a servant and nothing more. You do _not_ question me! Goodbye!" Blackhope's image disappeared from the crystal ball leaving Mason to think about what she just said. Mason went into Ambrose's office. He opened one of the drawers in his desk and found three keys. He took the three of them and headed for the shopping district.

**A/N: Once again, I'm really sorry this chapter took forever to get out. I kind of hit a severe writer's block. I knew what I wanted to do with this chapter, but I had no idea how I wanted to do it. I'm thinking about putting this story on a short hiatus just so that I can get a bunch of chapters done. Then when I return from the hiatus, chapters will be more frequent because I'll have a bunch done in advance. But I want to hear your opinion. In the reviews, tell me if you think I should put this story on hiatus or not. If I go on hiatus, there will be a date in the description that will tell you when I'll return. Thanks for reading.**


	10. Blackhope, Part II

**Chapter 10**

**Blackhope, Part 2**

Ambrose, Gil, Tina, Valon, Gritt, Luna, and Gwen stood on what used to be Unicorn Way in complete shock. They looked upon the decrepit street. Every inch of grass was yellow and brown. The water was green as if toxic waste was dumped into it.

"I don't believe it…who would do such a thing…?"

"Come on, Merle. We both know the answer to that." A voice behind them said. Ambrose's staff appeared in his hand and he pointed it behind them at the source of the voice. It was a ghost.

"Rose…I should have recognized your voice." The skies filled with darkness and lightning struck as soon as Ambrose said that.

"_I told you never to call me that!_" The six young Wizards looked around fearfully. Ambrose held his ground.

"Kids, this is Rose Whelmer, one of the brightest Wizards who ever attended this school. Of course when she was around, I was just a student. These days, however, she goes by a different name. Lady Blackhope."

"I thought a better name was in order. Being the most powerful ghost Wizard entails a name that screams, 'The Most Powerful Ghost Wizard.' But enough about me, I'd like to get to know your new friends." She waved her hand and a cage appeared around Ambrose. A chain came from the sky and attached itself to the cage. Just then a hole in the ground opened up underneath the cage. The young Wizards looked into the hole and what did they see?

"Lava…" Said Gritt. "Lava! Why is it always lava?"

"Technically it's still in the earth so it's magma." Said Gil.

"Seriously? You're worried about technical terms when our headmaster is seconds away from plunging to his death?"

"Let him go right now, Blackhope!" Said Valon as he jumped to the head of the group.

"Quiet, mutt! One more word, and Headmaster Barbeque is going to be on tomorrow's lunch list" She responded.

"Y'know, if the Headmaster plunges into magma, he would kinda melt. Making BBQ impossible." Said Gil.

Blackhope waved her arm and Gil glided backwards. He came to the edge of the pit of magma and nearly fell. He was waving his arms all over the place in an attempt to keep on his feet.

"Anyone know a levitation spell?" Gil tipped back and fell. He felt like he was falling in slow motion. He knew it was coming, but he didn't know when. The temperature rose as he fell. He heard his friends above screaming. Filled with anxiety, Gil flipped over and watched as the magma came closer and closer. He closed his eyes and felt the temperature drop dramatically. Then, he hit the ground. He slowly opened his eyes and saw that he was lying on a rocky surface. He looked around and the pit was covered in ice. "I gotta remember to thank Tina one of these days." He said to himself.

Valon looked into the pit to make sure Gil was safe. When he saw Gil was fine, he turned back around to face Blackhope.

"Alright, Blackhope, you had your laughs, now it's my turn. Let's duel!"

"I'm in, too." Said Gritt.

"And me!" said Gwen. Everyone looked at Luna and Tina.

"Eh, what the heck." Said Luna. "I'm in."

"I guess I'll help Gil." Said Tina as she pulled out her wand.

The battlefield formed around Blackhope and the four young Wizards.

"Hey, now," Blackhope said, "Four on one isn't-"

"Isn't very fair. I heard this from Rattlebones. Summon your stupid minions and let's get going." Valon interrupted.

"Y'know, kid it's not very nice to interrupt a villain's speech. Come to me, my minions!" three Skeletal Pirates joined Blackhope on the battlefield. "Challengers have the first move."

"Bad idea." Valon said. "Part Htaed!" Valon threw his card at Blackhope and it formed into a shield that circled her.

"Hey, guys, I think Valon's got Blackhope under control. Let's focus on the pirates." Said Gritt. He grabbed a card and threw it into the air. "Ekans Rednuht!" The card turned to light and shot down to the ground as lightning. And from the lightning emerged the Thunder Snake. A blast of lightning from its tail was all it took to destroy one of the skeletal pirates.

"Pmi." Said Luna as she threw a card. The Imp's sour notes caused the Skeletal Pirate to lose sixty five of its health points, leaving it with thirty.

"Baracs." Said Gwen. The battlefield turned to a sandy desert-like scene. A scarab appeared and tackled the Skeletal Pirate, destroying it.

"Good help is so hard to find these days." Said Blackhope. "Doolb Tab" A Blood Bat appeared and attacked Valon causing his health to drop by 110, leaving him with 389. Valon responded by casting a Dark Sprite at Lady Blackhope. It would have done 105 damage, but thanks to the boost he got from the Death Trap, she lost 136 health points. Gritt used his second Thunder Snake to destroy the last Skeletal Pirate. Luna used her second Imp and Gwen used her second Scarab to destroy Blackhope.

Blackhope's health reduced to zero and the battlefield disappeared, but Blackhope didn't disappear.

"Hey, man what gives?" Valon asked. "She looks down, but she's still here. Shouldn't se, like, go away, or something?"

"What did you do to Unicorn Way?" Luna asked forcefully to Blackhope. Blackhope slowly got up and rose into the air again as if she was as good as new. She quickly pulled out her wand and pointed it at Valon.

"NO!" Grit screamed. A large cloud formed over Blackhope.

"You little nuisance." She said to Gritt. "You're the heir, aren't you?" A bolt of lightning shot down from the cloud and struck Blackhope. Once the light had cleared, she was gone.

The area where she was floating began to glow. The glow stretched further and further across Unicorn Way, completely replenishing it. The light eventually died down and Unicorn Way looked just as it did before. The grass was green, the blue water sparkled, the fairies roamed freely, and there wasn't an undead creature in sight.

"Do you think it's over?" Gwen asked.

"Well, it's over on Unicorn Way." Said Gil. Everyone looked over to see the hole in the ground was gone and Tina was in the middle of freezing Ambrose's cage. Once she was done, she gave Gil a thumbs up. The two of them lifted the cage in the air and then dropped it. The cage shattered and Ambrose was freed.

"Thank you, two. You saved me. And as for you four," Ambrose said as he turned to Gritt, Gwen, Luna and Valon. "You showed an amazing amount of bravery today. You have replenished one of our streets to its former glory. I'm very proud."

"No sweat, Headmaster," Said Gritt. "By the way, do you know what 'the heir' is supposed to mean?"

"Well, if I told you, you wouldn't get to experience the fun of figuring it out on your own, would you, Gritt?" Ambrose responded, before walking away.

"…WHAT?"


	11. The Halloween Bash

**Chapter 11**

**The Halloween Bash**

It was a brisk fall evening in Wizard City. All the young Wizards were enjoying what Unicorn Way had to offer. Valon, however was just learning a new Spell from Malorn Ashthorn.

"Congratulations, Valon, you have hereby mastered the Spell known as Ghoul. With it, you can damage your opponents, while replenishing your own health." Said Malorn.

"Aw snap! Are you serious?" Valon exclaimed.

"So, is it true that you're the one who saved Unicorn Way?"

"Yup, that was me. But y'know, my friends helped out a lot. I wonder what I should do, now that Unicorn Way."

"Well, you could visit the streets of Olde Town."

"The three streets of whose-a-whatsit Town? Never heard of it."

"Well, there's Fire Cat Alley, Triton Avenue, and Cyclops Boulevard. If you go to the Shopping District, there's a tunnel to Olde Town, and from there, there are three tunnels that lead to three different streets. They're a lot of fun."

"What's a lot of fun?" Asked Gil from behind Valon.

"Oh, hey, Gil, what's up?"

"I finally learned the Troll spell." Valon and Gil began to walk back to the Shopping District. "It took me, like four tries. Professor Drake said that I'll never be a Grand Master Conjurer."

"Aren't our teachers supposed to, I don't know, help us?"

"Well, I guess being a big fat jerk face runs in the Drake family."

"I don't even want to talk about it. My life just got back to normal. Well, as normal as a Wizard's life can be. Maybe now that Malistaire's plans are foiled, I can get on with my life."

"Well, the Halloween Bash is gonna be fun. It'll be a nice event to get your mind off of it."

"Oh yeah…I guess I should start with asking someone."

"Oh, right. Speaking of that, I finally plucked up the courage to-"

"You asked Tina?"

"Yup."

"Awesome, man. Good for you…What do you think of Luna?"

"Luna? She's cool."

"I think I'm gonna ask her."

Meanwhile, Mason was also traversing the Olde Town mumbling to himself in a worried tone. He was quick and jittery as he went from Triton Avenue to Cyclops Boulevard to Fire Cat Alley and back again.

"I've gotta hurry," he said to himself. "He's gonna kill me! He's gonna kill me! If I don't do something quick, I'm gonna die!" He ran as fast as he could down Fire Cat Alley. He got to a theater at the end of the street. He burst through the door and took a look at the spacious area. "Yes…This is perfect."

Valon was looking at himself in the Shopping District fountain attempting to practice asking Luna out.

"Wow. Who knew that spending a month or so fighting creepies could destroy one's social life so much? I have no idea what to say to her. How'd you do it, Gil? How'd you ask Tina?"

"Well, once you've been saved from plunging into a pit of magma by a person, asking them to a school dance isn't exactly the hardest thing in the world."

"Good point. However I don't think Blackhope's coming back any time soon, so my chances of plunging into a pit of magma before the Halloween Bash may be slim."

"Well, there's always Mason. Being a Pyromancer, he may know something about magma."

"Hmmm…I wonder what happened to Mason. I haven't seen him since he let himself go down in that battle with Rattlebones."

"I still can't believe he did that. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was trying to throw the duel so you wouldn't stand a chance."

"Here they come." Tina, Gwen, Gritt, and Luna were all heading into the Shopping District. Tina, Gwen and Luna were talking amongst themselves while Gritt had his nose in a book, attempting to figure out the 'heir' thing as usual.

"Hey, Guys." Said Tina. Gritt dashed past the three of them and straight to Gil.

"Gil! You're smart, right? You must help me! I have no idea how to figure this out and it's driving me crazy. Blackhope, Ambrose…even that punk, Mason know about it."

"I'm sorry Gritt, but I have no idea what 'the heir' means either."

"Yeah…Gritt and Gil go to library now." Gritt spun Gil around and pushed him toward the tunnel to the Commons. The other four followed. Gwen and Tina were talking to each other while Valon was walking next to Luna, compiling his thoughts on how to ask her to the Bash.

"Hey, Luna…"

"Yeah?"

"Do…you…?"

"…What…?"

"Do you have a date for the Halloween Bash tomorrow night?"

"No, I don't."

"Do…you want to go with me?"

"I'd love to."

"Well that was ten times easier than I thought it would be."

Later that night, Mason was still awake and still in the theater despite it being much past curfew. He waved his wand frantically, nearly whimpering as he attempted to cast a spell.

"Come on! Come on! This spell has to work! Hguorht meht tel ot latrop a etaerc. Werc a fo pleh eht tuohtiw deeccus tonnac i. Grrr…I hate this stupid spell. Come on! Work! Hguorht meht tel ot latrop a etaerc. Werc a fo pleh eht tuohtiw deeccus tonnac i!" Mason's wand glowed a bit, but he still didn't get the results he wanted. "I have to get this spell right! If I don't, I may have to deal with another quote unquote reasonable and well-deserved punishment."

The next day, Gil knocked on Valon's door.

"Hey, man, aren't you going to wear a costume?" Valon asked.

"Dude, we're already Wizards." Gil said.

"Oh…yeah."

"Did you ever ask Luna to the Bash?"

"Yup!"

"Sweet." They high fived.

The Halloween Bash was held in the Commons. The area was decorated with floating jack-o-lanterns, black and orange streamers, and holographic monsters roaming all over the place. Everyone was dancing to the rockin' and admittedly gruesome that the enchanted instruments were playing.

During a particularly slow song, Valon noticed someone who he hadn't seen in weeks. The one and only Mason.

"Are you kidding me?" he said aloud.

"What?" Luna asked."

"You'll never guess who has a date."

"Who." Valon pointed in his direction. "What the heck? What girl would date Mason? He's a jerk!"

"Mason doesn't exactly look like he's having a good time. In fact he looks freaked…You wanna sneak over there and see what they're talking about?"

"Are you suggesting that after life around here got back to normal, we get mixed up with that jerk again? You're suggesting that while we're supposed to be having fun and enjoying each other's company, we, instead eavesdrop to see if Mason is doing anything nefarious? That sounds like so much fun! Let's." The two continued to dance together as they inched closer and closer to Mason and his date. As they neared him, they began to hear what he was saying.

"You're leaving me?" the girl said.

"Yeah, didn't I just say that?" Mason responded.

"But the slow dancing just started."

"I don't care! I gotta go!"

"No! You're staying here!" She said as she grabbed his arm.

"GET OFF ME!" Mason pulled his arm out of her grip and walked off.

"Oh my goodness!" Luna said. "That jerk!"

"I wonder what he's up to." Valon said.

"You wanna follow him, don't you?"

"Can we?" Valon sheepishly smiled.

"Come on." She grabbed his arm and pulled him in the direction that Mason was headed. They followed him through the Shopping District and all the way to Olde Town. They then headed for the tunnel marked Fire Cat Alley. They went down the whole street until they reached a large building. They slowly cracked the door and peaked through. They saw that the building was a theater. Mason stood on the stage laughing maniacally. There were hundreds, maybe thousands of monsters crammed in the theater.

"Yes finally it worked!" Mason shouted with a bit of insanity in his voice. "I finally got you all here! I knew I'd get the spell right! Now the barrier that protects the main areas in Wizard City so we're sticking to the streets. I want all of you to patrol Cyclops Boulevard. You! Get your butts to Triton Avenue. And you stick to this street." One of the monsters stepped out of the crowd.

"Yeah, man, I don't mean to be rude, but…You're just Malistaire's stupid Wizard servant! Why should we listen to you?" Every monster started laughing. Mason shook with anger. He swiftly waved his wand and the monster instantly caught on fire. He screamed in agonizing pain as he ran around the theater.

"Any more questions?" Mason asked calmly. Every monster raised their hand. "_GOOD! NOW GET OUT THERE!" _he shouted. Valon pulled Luna away from the door and around the back of the theater to hide from the creatures that were filing out. Valon listened closely to see if the monsters' marching stopped.

"Y'know, Valon, I knew as soon as you said you beat Malistaire's minions, you would be a thorn in my side." Mason stepped around to the back of the theater "I don't care how good of a Wizard you think you are. I'm going to kill the both of you right now." Mason drew his wand and pointed it at Valon and Luna. Luna and Valon jumped out of the way as they watched the area they just were burrn. They hopped away again and that area set on fire, too. Mason pointed his wand again. In return, Luna pointed her wand at him. A big flash came out of Mason's wand and Mason caught on fire. This gave Valon and Luna the split second they needed to teleport out of there. Mason growled and teleported away, himself.

Back in Ravenwood, Gil was walking Tina to her dorm.

"Thanks, Gil. I had fun with you tonight."

"Well thank you for saving my life." Gil responded.

"Oh, that. That was no problem."

"Well…good night." Tina backed into the dorm and closed the door. Gil turned to go to his dorm, when he heard the door re-open. Tina came out and quickly gave Gil a peck on the cheek before zipping back into the dorm. Gil turned back around in somewhat of a trance. He was, however quickly snapped out of it when he saw Valon and Luna teleport into the area.

"Hey, guys. What's up?" Gil asked.

"Oh nothing." Said Valon. "Mason Grey just released an army of monsters across the three streets of Olde Town."

"That's fabulous…" Said Gil, still in a daze.

"Aw, snap…" Valon chased Gil who was heading into the dorm. Luna walked into the girl's dorm and knocked on Tina's door.

"Yes?" she answered.

"You kiss Gil?" Luna ask.

"Just the cheek."

"Well, now he's gone loopy. Good night."

"Good night."


	12. Dawn of a New Disaster

**Chapter 12**

**Dawn of a New Disaster**

**A/N: This story is still going to be on hiatus for a few months, but I missed uploading so I'm giving you guys a Chapter today.**

"I don't think you're understanding this, Gil." Valon said as he followed Gil through the Commons.

"Valon. Come on. Are you even listening to yourself? I know Mason is, like the hugest jerk in the Spiral, but seriously? I doubt he's working for Malistaire."

"But he tried to _KILL _me and Luna. I defeated two of Malistaire's minions. I'm sure he wants me out of the way. Why else would Mason try to kill me?"

"Oh, gee, Valon. Lemme think about it. Umm…he doesn't like you."

"Valid point. But what about the army of monsters?"

"…Coincidence…? Okay, I believe you. But why are you trying to convince me? You need to head straight to Ambrose."

"I can't go to Ambrose without hard evidence. If Mason was under the influence of a mind control spell, do you think Ambrose could discover it?"

"Okay, let's revisit this. Mason…doesn't…like…you. How are you going to get him to go to Ambrose?"

"Well I…You…He…I…Dangit! I hate when you're right."

"Here's what I propose. You, me and everyone else need to figure out the whole Mason deal while we save the Olde Town streets just like we did Unicorn Way."

"Wait…We have to save the streets?"

"I guess so." The two found Tina in the Fairgrounds. Immediately upon seeing them, she ran up to Gil and gave him a big hug.

"So…" Valon said in a confused tone. "Are you two…" For some reason, Valon just couldn't say the word 'dating'. Gil and Tina looked at each other, then back at Valon, then back at each other.

"Well…" Gil said.

"I…" Tina said

"It—We"

"Uh…"

"We kind of…"

"So what did you guys need me for?" Tina desperately trying to change the subject.

"We uh…I think our little group has to save a couple more streets in Wizard City."

"What? Why?"

"Well…Mason released an entire army of monsters upon the three streets of Olde Town."

"Well that's…great."

"Where's Luna?" Valon inquired .

"She went to Moolinda Wu to ask her if there's a Life Spell to heal a burn." Tina responded.

"A burn?" Valon thought he and Luna had escaped Mason's attempt to burn them alive. "Mason tried to kill me and Luna."

"What?" Tina exclaimed.

"Last night after Mason released the monsters onto Wizard City, he found us and tried to burn us alive. I think that's where she got the burn."

"Well where is he? I wanna freeze some sense into him."

"Well…I think he might be dead."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, he tried to point his wand at us in an attempt to set us on fire, but Luna did something that rebounded the spell back at him. The last thing we saw when we teleported out of there was him burning. If he's not dead…then he's in hiding somewhere."

"Okay, let's assume the worst." Tina said. "He's hiding. Now we have to find Gritt, Gwen and Luna."

"Well, here comes Luna." Gil said. Luna walked through the Ravenwood tunnel pointing her wand at her arm. Her entire arm was glowing bright green.

"Hey, guys." Luna said. Valon dashed in front of Gil and Tina.

"Luna! Mason burned you? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine…Really. Don't worry about it. See?" She held out her arm. Her arm stopped glowing and it looked completely healed. Valon sighed in relief.

"Do you know where Gwen or Gritt is?"

"Gritt is in the library and I think Gwen went to explore the three streets of Olde Town."

"What? Which one did she go to?"

"Uh…The one with the cat."

"Oh, shoot! We gotta go!" The four ran to the library. In almost an instant, they burst into the library, picked Gritt up out of his seat and pushed him out the door."

"What's the big idea? I think I saw the word, heir." Gritt said as he desperately tried to keep up with the group of young Wizards running through the Commons.

"Gritt, you've torn through every book in Wizard City. Give it up." Tina said.

"Hey!" Gritt whined. The five of them ran to Fire Cat Alley. Suddenly ropes flew out of nowhere from all directions. They encircled then entangled the six Wizards. There were red flashes. They were going by too fast to see.

"What's going on?" Valon asked.

"We're being attacked!" Gritt said "Wands out, everybody!" Another flash went by and Gritt was gone.

"Where'd he go?" Gwen asked. She disappeared as well.

"Gwen!" Tina exclaimed. Luna disappeared, then Valon. Tina was paralyzed with fear. "I think we're next." She said. Gil was afraid. He knew that they were going to be taken by whatever was taking everyone else.

"Okay Tina, I know this may not be the best time, but I have to ask you something…" Gil began to say. "Are you and I…Y'know…together…?" In a flash, Gil and Tina were gone as well.

Gil awoke what felt like hours later. His vision was blurry, but when he came to he saw a fire burning right in front of his face. He focused his vision more to see that it was a small creature holding a bow and arrow. The tip of the arrow was burning and the creature was aiming his arrow right at him. He tried to stand but he was bound to a chair by rope. He looked all around and saw that Tina, Gritt, Luna and Gwen were all bound to a chair as well and the chairs were arranged in a pentagon. Gil didn't see Valon though.

"Where are we?" He asked himself quietly.

"Gil!" Gritt said quietly. "You're awake!"

"Gritt! Where are we?"

"Gentlemen!" Gritt and Gil looked up to see where that voice came from. Mason was atop a stage with a curtain behind him. "Welcome to the show."

"Uh…Show?" Gritt said.

"Yes, show! Hello! Don't you see the big curtain? You guys have no appreciation for a dramatic entrance. Oh, well. No matter. You'll be dead soon anyways, but before I order my minions here to shoot flaming arrows directly at you, I wanted you guys to see the death of your leader." The curtain rose and Mason pointed towards a chair that was onstage. But the chair was empty. Mason simply stood there for a few moments. A dark green blast came out of nowhere and hit Mason right in the face.

"Mason, did you really think that if you just left me behind a curtain all by myself I wouldn't try to escape?" Said Valon as he emerged onstage.

"No." Said Mason. He quickly drew his wand and shot a blast of fire at Valon. Valon was hit and sent flying across the stage. His body was smoking as he landed with a thud.

"Okay…ow…" Valon said. By this point, the girls had all woken from their stupor and were watching the stage intensely. Mason raised his wand and Valon did the same. It seemed like they were aiming in slow motion. The five were waiting to see who would cast a spell first.

They aimed their wands at each other and the spells were both cast at the same time. Valon's dark green energy blast and Mason's orange fire blast collided. Both spells were powerful so neither spell struck either one of them. The two spells created a ball of light in the center of the stage. After about half a minute both spells stopped and the ball disappeared. Mason waved his wand.

"Fle Erif!" Mason chanted. Just before his spell activated, Valon took the opportunity to shoot a blast at Mason. Mason screamed in tortured pain. Suddenly a voice boomed through the theater.

"Another failure, Mason? You disappoint me." The theater rumbled.

"I got it!" Gil yelled. He had been trying to reach into his boot this whole time to get his wand and he finally succeeded. He waved it and his binding disappeared.

The rumbling caused a lighting fixture to fall onto the stage. Valon jumped out of the way just in time to avoid getting crushed.

Gil got rid of the fire elves who were threatening the others with their burning arrows. He then used his wand to make the ropes bounding everyone disappear. Mason, watching his plans fall apart pointed a wand at them and shot a blast of fire. Gritt responded by shooting a blast of lightning. Instead of colliding as Mason and Valon's had, Gritt's lightning immediately overtook Mason's blast of fire and knocked him off of his feet.

Gil finished getting rid of the ropes and told everyone to hide. A large translucent hand reached out from the ceiling of the theater. It grabbed Gil's legs and began pulling him towards the ceiling. Tina on impulse ran to grab Gil's hands in an attempt to pull him back down.

"We have to help!" said Gwen.

"Everybody fire at the hand!" said Gritt. He, Luna and Gwen shot energy blasts from their wands at the hand. Tina rooted herself to the ground by freezing her feet to the floor. The combined force of the three wizards shooting it caused it to release Gil into Tina's arms. Mason recovered from the lightning and stood up. He pointed his wand again poised to attack, but the hand recovered and grabbed Mason. In an instant, Mason was pulled through the roof to who knows where.


End file.
